Although Almirón’s influence was fitful his darting runs and tricky movement helped ensure Palace never assumed control.īenítez’s side would have been ahead had either Yedlin’s eye-catching shot not whizzed fractionally off target or Florian Lejeune not headed straight at Guaita. Such solidity has been augmented by Miguel Almirón’s arrival from Atlanta, with the Paraguayan offering Newcastle a new dimension. Like Zaha, the winger offers Hodgson’s side real edge and menace, providing an exhaustive test of the defensive resilience instilled by Benítez. If Palace contested that decision, few Newcastle fans would disagree with the rationale behind their manager’s enduring desire to bring Townsend back to Tyneside. James Tomkins thought he had scored when, following a corner, his fine low shot squirmed beneath Dubravka’s body but that “goal” was also disallowed for offside - this time, against James McArthur. Yet bewitching as such cameos were Martin Dubravka was not exactly being stretched in goal and it was Newcastle who continued to create - and miss - the more clearcut chances as Rondón discovered that, for all his unconventional eccentricities, Guaita, who made some good saves, quite possibly had magnetic gloves.
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Suitably stung by that disallowed effort, Zaha promptly subdued the Gallowgate End courtesy of some audacious, and electric, defender disorientating skill.
![left 4 dead screamer left 4 dead screamer](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Uz0x1UU-vZY/hqdefault.jpg)
Photograph: Craig Doyle/ProSports/Rex/Shutterstock Salomón Rondón puts the ball in the net from an offside position. Fabian Schär shot over the bar before Palace’s defence failed to clear a cross and Salomón Rondón bundled the ball home only to be, rightly, flagged offside. When Guaita dashed off his line and flapped unconvincingly, Matt Ritchie’s miscued shot was deflected wide. In the course of a high tempo 10-minute spell Newcastle missed three decent chances while highlighting Vicente Guaita’s goalkeeping vulnerabilities. As Andros Townsend, Zaha and their teammates moved the ball fast and fluently, alarming gaps kept opening up in areas the home side seemed unable to defend but then, almost imperceptibly, the balance of power shifted slightly. It’s still the same situation.”īenítez pitted his 3-4-3 system against Roy Hodgson’s 4-3-3 and, at first, Newcastle found Palace’s configuration extremely difficult to fathom. “We had control of the game, we were doing a lot of good things but we made a mistake,” said Benítez, who reported no updates on a contract impasse almost as frustrating as Brexit.
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When the final whistle blew home frustration reigned Newcastle are still not immune from Championship football next season and talks over the potential extension of their manager’s soon to be expired contract appear to be going nowhere.